Fixing the Big Leagues - Realignment and Expansion

 

I have decided to introduce a new feature called Fixing the Big Leagues.  In this occasionally used feature, I am going to tackle a problem facing Major League Baseball.  I will be probably be writing about the big problems, like drugs or international prospects at times, but I will also be writing about the relatively insignificant problems as well.  In this first installment, I am going to keep it relatively light and look at a potential scenario that would expand the major leagues by two teams.

Right now, the majors have 30 teams with 15 in each league which is good for balance, but also requires constant interleague play, which cheapens that once or twice a season gimmick.  In my opinion it is much better than the 14/16 team split from two years ago.  At least now every division has an equal chance at winning a division and/or making the playoffs, unlike before when an NL Central team had a 1 in 6 chance while an AL West team had a 1 in 4 chance.

My fix for the big leagues is to expand by two teams and change to 4 four team division much like the NFL.  I would also relocate two teams and swap leagues for two other teams to give a geographical balance to the leagues and more importantly give each team a natural rival in the other league.  How will it work?  In a vacuum, it would work without a doubt.  In actuality, there would be too many variables to know for sure.  But let's just have some fun and play a little "fantasy baseball."


First up is figuring out the divisions.  I would stick with the current divisions (East, Central, West) and add one new division (North) to the mix in each league.  Easy start.

I also mentioned two teams that I felt need to be relocated.  One because they just can't develop a following where they are located and the other because they have damaged their brand so much that there is probably no fixing it.  The two teams I am referring to are the Rays and the Marlins.  I'll get back to these two teams later.

I start out by deciding on the rivalries that should never be broken up like the Yankees/Red Sox, Cubs/Cards, and Dodgers/Giants.

That would give us the following

AL
East - Yankees, Red Sox
North - 
Central -
West -

NL
East -
North -
Central - Cubs, Cardinals
West - Dodgers, Giants

Then I would add in several teams that would pair with each of these teams to give a natural rival in the opposite division.

AL
East - Yankees, Red Sox
North - 
Central - White Sox, Royals
West - Angels, A's

NL
East - Mets, Phillies
North -
Central - Cubs, Cardinals
West - Dodgers, Giants

Next I would fill in some spots with teams that do not need to change anything that would leave us here.

AL
East - Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles
North - Twins, Indians, Tigers
Central - White Sox, Royals
West - Angels, A's

NL
East - Mets, Phillies, Nationals
North - Brewers, Reds, Pirates
Central - Cubs, Cardinals
West - Dodgers, Giants

Next I would decide which teams should change leagues in order to geographically balance the leagues.  The first team will fix the most recent screw up and bring the Astros back to the NL and pair them with the Rangers.   I would move them to the Central since I realize that Texas is not in the western part of the country.  The second team need to come from the NL West.  It would be either the D-Backs or the Padres because they are the best geographical rivals.  In this scenario, I am choosing Arizona to move the AL West and pair them with San Diego.  That would give us the following.

AL
East - Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles
North - Twins, Indians, Tigers
Central - White Sox, Royals, Rangers
West - Angels, A's, Diamondbacks

NL
East - Mets, Phillies, Nationals
North - Brewers, Reds, Pirates
Central - Cubs, Cardinals, Astros
West - Dodgers, Giants, Padres


That leaves us with 4 teams that currently exist and 4 teams that currently do not exist to place as the final team in each division.  None of the current teams match up as geographical rivals, so it makes sense to put them in a division and then put a new team as their paired rival.  So let's place the 4 current teams: Atlanta, Toronto, Colorado, and Seattle.

AL
East - Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles
North - Twins, Indians, Tigers, Blue Jays
Central - White Sox, Royals, Rangers
West - Angels, A's, Diamondbacks, Mariners

NL
East - Mets, Phillies, Nationals, Braves
North - Brewers, Reds, Pirates
Central - Cubs, Cardinals, Astros, Rockies
West - Dodgers, Giants, Padres


Now to decide where the new teams are going.  I'll start with the East and Atlanta would pair very nicely with a new expansion team in Charlotte, NC.  Since that team will go into the AL East, let's say it is the relocated Tampa Bay Rays moving there.  For the name, I would stick with the maritime theme and go with the current minor league team the Carolina Mudcats.

The other relocation should be the Marlins.  The first thing I would do is force Jeffrey Loria out by threatening to contract the team instead of relocating it.  Next, looking at my three remaining teams to pair with I see something that is very appealing.  I would pair the Marlins with the Blue Jays and move them to the location of Jeffrey Loria's other failed team by reviving the Montreal Expos.

That gives us

AL
East - Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles, Mudcats
North - Twins, Indians, Tigers, Blue Jays
Central - White Sox, Royals, Rangers
West - Angels, A's, Diamondbacks, Mariners

NL
East - Mets, Phillies, Nationals, Braves
North - Brewers, Reds, Pirates, Expos
Central - Cubs, Cardinals, Astros, Rockies
West - Dodgers, Giants, Padres

Now we are down to the two expansion teams which will be paired with the Rockies and the Mariners.  I'll start with the easy one first and pair Seattle with a new rival.  There are two obvious choices with Portland and Vancouver.  Since I added Montreal earlier, we'll avoid a third Canadian team and go with Portland.  The new Portland franchise should be known as the Lumberjacks, a nickname which pair well as a rival of the Mariners.

Finally we get to my team, the Rockies.  The biggest problem with the Rockies is that there is really no obvious locations anywhere near them.  At first I thought of Las Vegas or Salt Lake City, but since Colorado would be moving to the Central they are out.  Next I thought of Omaha, but it would pair better with Kansas City and that would just throw off everything.  I also thought of San Antonio, but a third Texas team unbalances everything.  Finally it came to me...Oklahoma City, they should only be known as Oklahoma to pair them with Colorado.  And for the nickname, we need a pair for the Rockies.  Therefore, I think the new team should be known as the Oklahoma Miners.


That gives us the final setup of


AL
East - Yankees, Red Sox, Orioles, Mudcats
North - Twins, Indians, Tigers, Blue Jays
Central - White Sox, Royals, Rangers, Miners
West - Angels, A's, Diamondbacks, Mariners

NL
East - Mets, Phillies, Nationals, Braves
North - Brewers, Reds, Pirates, Expos
Central - Cubs, Cardinals, Astros, Rockies
West - Dodgers, Giants, Padres, Lumberjacks



Thank you to those of you that stayed with me throughout this process.  I believe this setup could work as it would fix several different problems.  Some people would say that expansion would water down the league even more, but it has been 15 years since the last expansion and the game is continuing to globalize so I don't think it would be that large of a problem. 

Here is your reward for reading down this far.

Thanx for reading.